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Gary Carter
Gary Edmund Carter (born April 8, 1954-February 16, 2012(2012-02-16) ), nicknamed "Kid", Was a former Major League Baseball Hall Of Fame catcher from 1974-1992. Carter played with the Montreal Expos, New York Mets, San Francisco Giants, and Los Angeles Dodgers. He is regarded as one of the top hitting catchers in baseball history. He was 2nd in the National League Most Valuable Player balloting in 1980 and 3rd in 1986, with both awards being by Mike Schmidt. He also was 6th in both 1981 and 1985. Carter was one of the most popular plauyers of his time. During his career, Carter established himself as one of the premier catchers in the National League. He won three Gold Glove awards (1980, 1981, 1982), and five Silver Slugger awards (1981, 1982, 1984, 1985, 1986). Born in Culver City, California, Carter made his major league debut with the Expos on September 16, 1974, going 0 for 4 against the New York Mets. He hit .270 with 17 home runs and 68 RBI in 1975, his first full season, making the All-Star team and receiving The Sporting News Rookie of the Year Award. While solidifying his spot as one of baseball's premier catchers in the late 1970s and early 1980's, he set personal-highs in RBI (106, leading the league), batting average (.294), hits (175), total bases (290), and games played (159) in 1984. At the end of the 1984 season, Carter was traded to the New York Mets for Hubie Brooks, Mike Fitzgerald, Herm Winningham, and Floyd Youmans. Carter won over Mets fans immediately with his leadership and charisma, as well as his on-field production. In his first game as a Met on April 9, 1985, he hit a 10th inning walk-off home run off St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Neil Allen to give the Mets a 6-5 Opening Day victory. With the Mets, Carter enjoyed consistent production with 32 home runs and 100 RBI in 1985; and 24 home runs and 105 RBI in 1986, winning his only World Series championship in that season. Carter will be forever remembered by Mets fans as the man who started the Mets 10th inning two out Game 6 rally in the World Series against the Boston Red Sox. Carter would come around to score the first of three Mets runs that inning on a single by Ray Knight, as the Mets would defeat the Red Sox in one of the most famous games in baseball history. It also widely forgotten that Carter's 8th inning run scoring sacrifice fly was the hit that forced the game to go into extra innings. Carter also crushed two home runs over the Green Monster in Game 4 of the Series at Fenway Park. Nevertheless, Carter began showing signs of deterioration in 1987, when he batted only .235, and was released at the end of the 1989 season after hitting just .183. After leaving the Mets, he played for the Giants in 1990, the Dodgers in 1991, and returned to Montreal for a last hurrah in 1992. Carter was a career .262 hitter with 324 home runs and 1225 RBI. Over his 19 year career, he ranks sixth all-time in career home runs by a catcher with 298, and was selected as a All-Star eleven times, winning the Most Valuable Player award in the 1981 and 1984 games. He hit 2 home runs in the 1981 All-Star Game (5th & latest player with 2 hrs in AS Game), and is the only ever player to hit 2 home runs in both an All-Star Game and a World Series Game. In 2003, his sixth year on the ballot, Gary Carter was selected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. The cap on his plaque is an Expos cap, although he did ask if he could have the plaque as half an Expo and half a Met. Though most took this as Carter joking with the media at the time, it was a legitimate debate as to which team he would be associated with. Carter had won his only World Series title with the Mets, had worked for the Mets organization since retiring as a player, and it was his stint in New York that made Carter a media celebrity. Additionally, Carter himself had expressed a preference to be inducted as a Met. However, Carter played 12 seasons in Montreal, as opposed to only five in New York. The final decision rested with the Hall of Fame, and the Hall felt that Carter's play with the Expos had earned his Hall of Fame induction, whereas his play with the Mets by itself would not have. Carter had previously been inducted into the New York Mets Hall of Fame in 2001. Also in 2003, Carter was elected into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame along with Kirk McCaskill. Carter was the manager of the Gulf Coast Mets minor league team in 2005 before being promoted to the A-level St. Lucie Mets for 2006 . Trivia *In 1961, Carter was the 7-year-old national champion of the "Punt, Pass and Kick" contest, the first year the youth football event was staged. *Started the Mets famous 10th inning rally in Game 6 of the 1986 World Series with a 2 out single with nobody on. The Mets would go on to score 3 runs in the inning to win the game 6-5. Carter led both teams with 9 rbi's in the 1986 World Series (tied with Boston Red Sox player Dwight Evans and was 2nd to Ray Knight in the balloting for Series MVP. *He was the Mets team co-captain with Keith Hernandez in 1988 and 1989. *Sunday August 4, 2002 was Gary Carter Bobblehead Day at Olympic Stadium (Stade Olympique) in Montreal. There was a Carter autograph signing before the game and a pre-game ceremony honoring Carter. *His number 8 was retired by the Montreal Expos. After Expos moved to Washington, D.C. following the 2004 season, Carter's number along with Andre Dawson, Rusty Staub, and Tim Raines were moved to the Bell Centre, home of the NHL's Montreal Canadiens. The Nationals have since reissued the number 8 to Marlon Anderson. While the Mets have not retired number 8, it has remained unused since Carter's election to the Hall of Fame. *Carter became the 4th player to hit 2 home runs in an All-Star Game (1981) and he is still the latest to do it, joining Arky Vaughan (1941), Ted Williams (1946]]. and Willie McCovey (1969). See also *Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame *List of Major League Baseball retired numbers *List of NL Gold Glove Winners at Catcher *List of NL Silver Slugger Winners at Catcher *Top 500 home run hitters of all time References External links * Baseball Hall of Fame * * Baseball Library * The Baseball Page Carter, Gary Carter, Gary Carter, Gary Carter, Gary Carter, Gary Carter, Gary Carter, Gary Carter, Gary Carter, Gary Carter, Gary Carter, Gary Carter, Gary Carter, Gary Carter, Gary Carter, Gary Carter, Gary Carter, Gary Carter, Gary Carter, Gary Carter, Gary Carter, Gary Carter, Gary Carter, Gary Carter, Gary Carter, Gary Category:2012 Deaths